I got a chance to test out a new Bluetooth
car receiver that looked interesting... the BrightPlay
Car HD Bluetooth Hands Free Car Kit with aptX Technology
from Brightech. Usually I find the Bluetooth car units somewhat cumbersome
to set up, get paired, and then use, all without having to pull over and
stumble through it all. The BrightPlay unit was the first one I've had
that "just worked"... I had it functioning in about 15 seconds,
and it worked exactly like I expected it should.

The receiver disk is a couple of inches
across and a little over a half inch in thickness. The main function button
is a round disk that is placed on the top of the receiver, and is perfect
for finding and pressing without looking down at it. The side of the receiver
has the on/off sliding button, the jack for the 3.5mm audio cable, and
the micro-USB charging port. On the back is the magnet that allows you
to mount the receiver anywhere on the dash that's convenient.

To give this a run-through, I used my
iPhone 4 and went to the Bluetooth screen. When I turned on the BrightPlay,
my phone found it and paired up in less than five seconds. Already it was
a hit in my eyes with no complicated pairing routine. I then plugged the
auxiliary cable into the receiver and the car's auxiliary jack. I fired
up a phone call to my wife, and the call clarity was excellent. I also
flipped to the music on my iPhone and started it playing. Again, very clear
connection and excellent sound quality.

The only thing I was going to downgrade
it on was the magnetic mounting directions. Because I didn't read it very
clearly, I thought you were supposed to just place the receiver anywhere
there was metal and you'd be set. Given that many dashboards these days
are plastic, I didn't see that as being very realistic. It wasn't until
I was back in the house that I found that the magnet on the back came off,
and that mine had been upside down (only showing the solid black side).
In reality, that disk has adhesive on one side, and you mount the disk
on the dashboard. You then just put the receiver on the disk, where it
says put via the magnet. A d'oh moment for me, but it took away the last
thing that I could say about the BrightPlay that wasn't five-star in nature.

If you need or want to have Bluetooth
connectivity in your car for your smart phone (either for calling or listening
to music without cables), the BrightPlay is an excellent choice for a very
good price. And, if you're getting questions from a non-techie person (imagine
your parents) who want to use a hands-free setup in their car, *definitely*
consider this unit. It's easy to set up, they can't do much to screw it
up, and you'll likely reduce your need to be on-call tech support by 90%.
:)

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